Built for Black families in Texas

The school your child
attends shouldn't
determine whether
they succeed.

But in Texas, it does — and the gap between the best and worst schools for Black children is 100 points. This tool helps you find the right one.

Campuses analyzed 6,550
Data source TEA TAPR 2024–25
Metric Approaches Grade Level+
Subject All Subjects
What the data reveals
Landscape
0%
of Texas schools earn an A for Black students
An A means 80% or more of Black students at that school are passing their grade-level tests. 3 out of 4 Texas public schools don't reach that bar.
Disparity
100pts
gap between the best and worst schools for Black students in Houston ISD
The best school in Houston ISD has 100% of its Black students passing. The worst has 0%. The district you live in doesn't determine your child's outcome — the specific school does.
Opportunity
0
schools where 80%+ of Black students are passing — with enough students to make it meaningful
Each of these 635 schools has at least 50 Black students tested. A high passing rate with only 5 students is easy to achieve. These schools have earned it at scale.
Warning
63%
Middle school is where Black students fall furthest behind
Only 63% of Black middle school students are passing grade-level tests — 12 points lower than in elementary school and 12 points below high school. If your child is approaching middle school, pay close attention to where they land.
Opportunity
243
schools have 90%+ of Black students passing — at meaningful scale
These 243 schools have 90% or more of their Black students passing grade-level tests, with at least 25 Black students tested. A high passing rate at a school with only 5 Black students is easy. These schools have earned it with real numbers.
Gap
9pts
Fewer Black students pass math than reading at nearly every school
71% of Black students statewide are passing reading/ELA tests, but only 62% are passing math. If math is a concern for your child, use the subject filter to find schools where Black students are strongest in math specifically.
Disparity
88%
The district you live in tells you less than you think
In Wylie ISD, 88% of Black students are passing grade-level tests. In Waco ISD, only 42% are passing. Both are large Texas districts. The name of a district doesn't tell you how Black students are doing inside it.
Finding
75%
High school is where Black students perform best
75% of Black high school students are passing grade-level tests — the highest passing rate of any grade level. Black students tend to perform better as they get older, but only at schools that actively support that growth.
Warning
87
Schools rated A overall where fewer than 60% of Black students are passing
87 Texas schools have an A-level overall passing rate, yet fewer than 60% of their Black students are passing grade-level tests. A school's overall rating can hide what's actually happening for Black children inside it.
What matters most to you?
⌖
— schools
In Depth

The stories behind the numbers

Data tells you what's happening. These articles tell you why it matters and what you can do about it.

Best Schools
These 50 Texas Schools Are Proof It's Possible
Where Black students aren't just surviving — they're leading. A look at the schools where Black excellence is the expectation, not the exception.
Read the story →
 Accountability
50 High-Rated Texas Schools Where Black Students Are Being Left Behind
These schools look great on paper. The data tells a different story. A look at high-performing campuses where Black students are falling 30, 40, even 54 points behind their peers.
Read the story →
 Coming Soon
The District That Should Know Better: College Station ISD
A university town with resources, educated residents, and a 40-point gap for Black students at its middle school. How does that happen?
 Coming Soon
What the Best Schools Have in Common
Cedar Hill. Harmony. South Oak Cliff. When you line up the schools that are actually working for Black students, patterns emerge. Here's what they share.

Methodology

How this ranking works

Data source

Texas Education Agency TAPR Data Download — Campus STAAR All Grades, All Subjects, 2024–25. Available at rptsvr1.tea.texas.gov/perfreport/tapr.

Ranked by performance

Schools ordered by the percentage of African American students scoring Approaches Grade Level or above. The strongest absolute signal of academic results for Black children at each campus.

Ranked by equity

Gap = African American pass rate − All students pass rate at the same campus. A positive gap (green) means Black students outperformed their peers — surfaces schools that generic rankings miss.

Masking

TEA suppresses rates when fewer than 5 students in a group were tested. 2,534 campuses are excluded on this basis — they appear as no data rather than zero.

Small sample caution

A campus with 5 African American students tested at 100% is a weaker signal than one with 200 students at 85%. Results are filtered to schools with 25 or more Black students tested by default — adjust this under Filters. When two schools show the same pass rate, the one with more students tested ranks higher.

Data currency

This ranking reflects the 2024–25 school year. TEA publishes updated TAPR data annually each fall. Rankings will be refreshed each year as new data becomes available.

Know a Black parent making a school decision?

Send them this. The data is free, the tool is free — and the right school can change a child's trajectory.